PENSACOLA, Fla. — Regional officials have pledged to cooperate in the prosecution of Mary Rice, the woman who allegedly assisted now-deceased fugitive William "Billy" Boyette in a multistate killing spree.

Boyette is suspected of killing two women at a Milton hotel Jan. 31; killing a third woman Feb. 3 in Lillian, Ala.; and Monday in Beulah shooting a fourth woman, who was hospitalized and died Tuesday afternoon.

Rice had been traveling with Boyette almost throughout, and she is believed to have been an accomplice in some or all of the incidents. The duo was tracked to a Georgia hotel Tuesday and surrounded by law enforcement. Boyette committed suicide, and Rice surrendered peacefully.

Florida 1st circuit state attorney Bill Eddins said Georgia authorities have agreed to expedite Rice's extradition to either Alabama, where she faces one count of capital murder, or Florida, where she faces one count of accessory after the fact to capital murder.

"We will cooperate with Alabama authorities with regard to where she is tried first," Eddins said Tuesday evening. "Whether the Alabama (district attorney) believes it would be more beneficial to try her here first as an accessory to capital murder or to try her first in Alabama for capital murder, we will agree and defer to them."

The Florida charge stems from the deaths of 30-year-old Alicia Greer and 39-year-old Jacqueline Moore, two women who were found dead at the Emerald Sands Inn in Milton. Authorities have not disclosed the nature of Boyette and Rice's relationship or specified what role she may have played in the homicides, but Eddins confirmed that Rice and Boyette had been in contact before the first pair of murders.

Eddins said investigators are still reviewing whether Rice will be charged in connection with the shooting of Kayla Crocker. Crocker was shot in her Beulah home Monday, and her vehicle was stolen by Boyette and Rice, according to investigators. Crocker died Tuesday afternoon.

Eddins said he will be meeting with sheriff's investigators in the near future to sift through all the evidence in the case and decide if Rice will be charged as an accessory in that incident as well.

"Because of the speed at which this developed, the facts and circumstances are still under review," Eddins said.

According to the State Attorney's Office, Rice faces a maximum of 30 years in prison if she is convicted of the Milton accessory offense. If the evidence indicates Rice assisted in the Beulah shooting death, the state could potentially seek a second, concurrent 30-year sentence in that case.

Eddins said Rice could be sent to either Florida or Alabama in a matter of days if she waives extradition. If she fights her extradition, her transfer to a local jail would have to be requested and approved at the state-governor level. Both the sheriff and district attorney in Georgia have agreed to provide whatever assistance they can in the process.

Escambia County Sheriff's Deputies and other law enforcement members set up a mobile command center in Beulah late Tuesday afternoon to investigate a possible sighting of fugitive William Boyette. Tony Giberson/tgiberson@pnj.com

Members of the Escambia County Sheriff's Office SWAT team gather around a mobile command center in Beulah Tuesday afternoon. The team is on scene to investigate a possible sighting of fugitive William Boyette. Tony Giberson/tgiberson@pnj.com

Members of the Escambia County Sheriff's Office SWAT team gather around a mobile command center in Beulah Tuesday afternoon. The team is on scene to investigate a possible sighting of fugitive William Boyette. Tony Giberson/tgiberson@pnj.com